is this a good stove/good price?

[workingmom]

Well, my furnace is on it's last legs I just put in a new blower last week and the company said it would be a good idea to just get a new furnace as soon as I could. It's safe but really old just not worth fixing anymore they said and it will be pretty expensive to replace. We used to have wood stoves on the farm when I was a little girl and I loved them. I'm thinking about getting a wood stove instead of replacing my furnace since it still works. It will go in the corner of my living room and I can see the fire from everywhere including the kitchen. I turn the heat down anyway whenever I'm not home because I can't afford the bills. I only heat when I'm home and a stove can do that and will take the load off the old furnace. My next door neighbor is a tree service and has offered me all the free wood I want. He has a bunch stored up in his backyard probalby about 10 truckloads at least. I finally had some time off and got my first quote today. Then a call came in from work (I'm a nurse and work 12 hour shifts) and we lost another nurse so I will be working as much overtime as I can take in the near future. I go back in tonight so tomorrow's estimate that was scheduled will not happen. I probably won't be able to shop some more until after Christmas at this point.

I really liked the guy who came out today. He took pictures and measurements and seemed professional. He answered every question I asked too which was a lot. I can write a check for this and have my visa in reserve in case the furnace just dies but I don't think it will if I quit using it so much. So my question: Is a Pacific Energy vVista for $2565 a good deal? It includes a tiled protector pad for my wood floor and the chimney and the labor too. What do you think?

He said this was a great stove too what do you think? Also are there better stoves out there?

I'm just exhausted with my schedule and hope you can help me decide if I should just go ahead with this guy. The cold weather is here now and it will save me a lot of money to just get this put in if it's not a mistake but it's hard sometimes not to get scammed being a single mom. Thank you in advance.

Dana

 

[restorer]

You go girl! Sounds like a deal made in heaven. You need to clear and area for your wood and learn how to stack and store at least a few years of wood, but I applaud the front rangers who will do what is best for them and their environs. If you want some real professional adise from your area PM, MSG and ask about the deal.

My partner nursed a 30 yr old furnace until this year and gave up, but the install deal and the new furnace was very reasonable. Where you are, you have a good thing working.

 

[begreen]

The Vista is a smaller stove and you are in a cold climate. PE makes great stoves but I'm hoping this is a big enough stove to cover your needs. How big is the house and how well insulated is it?

There are other stoves on the market, but without more details about what you are trying to heat, it's hard to comment.

Another question, how much time are you home? What percentage of the heating do you expect the wood stove to accomplish?

 

[Jimbob]

Ask him to shoot you a quote on a Super 27, the Vista's bigger brother. The reason I suggest this, is the Super 27 has a deeper firebox which allows you to load the logs striaght in, as opposed to side-to side. Side to side loading of the logs can be a pain, as they sometimes try to roll out.
It also has a longer burn time which would be important because you are away from home for more than 12 hours at a time.
There is a larger stove by Pacific Energy, the SUMMIT, but I think that'd be a bit crazy for your house.
The Super 27 should be ~ 200-300 dollars more than the Vista.

 

[JohnnyBravo]

there are tons of great stoves out there and only a few good people selling them. if you like this guy shoping around may be more work than you need right now. like mentioned ask about the larger stove.